Jason Lanman, left, sits in a tent in front of the Boulder County Courthouse on the Pearl Street Mall on Thursday, talking to William Love, right. Lanman, part of the Occupy Boulder movement, was watching the tent for its owner, P.J. Jentsch, who had gone to the Occupy Denver rally.

Representatives of Occupy Boulder said the small group of activists who slept outside the courthouse on the Pearl Street Mall on Wednesday night does not represent them, and the group has not yet sanctioned overnight protests.

At a general assembly Thursday night, discussion over whether the Occupy Boulder movement needs an overnight presence left some members questioning their faith in the group's direction.

In a news release, Occupy Boulder representatives said, "While some individuals may have decided to support this effort, Occupy Boulder as a group has NOT agreed to support or join this effort. In fact we recently agreed as a group to delay 24/7 occupation for a variety of reasons. A clear distinction needs to be made between the actions of individuals vs. the legitimate and democratically decided actions of Occupy Boulder."

The release was a response to four protesters who stayed overnight on Pearl Street after posting on the official Occupy Boulder Facebook page, "The occupation has begun! Grab your tents and head to the Pearl St. Courthouse!" The post was later deleted, and Occupy Boulder posted another message discrediting the overnight protesters.

But Daniel Schwartz, one of the protesters who stayed overnight on Pearl Street, said nobody has the right to say who is and is not a part of the Occupy Boulder movement.

"Frankly, I was very surprised and very disappointed," Schwartz said. "The Occupy movement has no leader, no central organization. I think that was one of the core principles from the very beginning, and it is my belief that many people are forgetting that."

Some members expressed frustration with individuals operating outside of the Occupy Boulder general assembly.

"As much as all you see are people walking around, many of us spend 20 to 30 hours a week behind the scenes creating an infrastructure and direct democracy to move things forward," said Lauren Brillant.

Other members favored setting up a tent city but said the group should wait until it can manage a 24/7 presence in Boulder.

Occupy Denver protester Claudia Livingston, 63, of Westminster, chants with others at a rally at Denver's City and County Building on Thursday.
(
Ed Andrieski
)

"Boulder is not Denver, Boulder is not New York, Boulder is not Oakland," said Zach Freier. "It's better to do this right than to do this quickly."

Freier added that residents and government already appear to be in favor of the group's efforts to curb corporate greed and create jobs for Americans.

"I think we have a unique situation here in Boulder," he said. "Everyone here is largely in support of us and our cause."

While Schwartz told the group he would abide by their request to stop the 24/7 occupation on Pearl Street, he added that some people would begin to lose faith in the movement, himself included.

"Overnight protesting is the only way," he said. "Sign waving is nice, but I don't think it's enough.

"Right now, to put it bluntly, Occupy Denver is laughing at us. They think we're 'cute.'"

Earlier in the day, many Occupy protesters waving signs along Arapahoe Avenue said it should be up to individuals whether to set up tents.

"I don't necessarily think it's required," said Christine Silengo, of Boulder. "But I guess I'm impressed they would feel strongly enough to do that. I wouldn't do that, but I'm impressed they would."

Dan Frazier, also a Boulder resident, said the problem is not whether protesters are camping out or not, but with the number of people participating. He said the media tend to focus too much on the spectacle of the protests and not the spirit.

"What we need is to get as many people protesting as a CU football game; then we would really gain some attention," Frazier said. "Right now, the media is just looking at arrests, and they fail to put forth the message of justice and fairness. They forget that."

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